As a career coach and teacher of two career-related courses at Indiana University, I spend a lot of time helping people explore some of life’s biggies:

What matters most to you in life?What do you do well that you really enjoy doing?How can your strengths translate into meaningful work?What big issue do you ache to solve?If money were no object, how would you spend your time?
What’s your mission?

And many more …

The goal of this self-exploration is to help people identify (and then attain) the type of work that will make them feel like leaping out of bed with enthusiasm every morning, or at least most mornings!

For some, this professional bliss is just a dream, a luxury. But for many of us, it’s a delightful reality. And naturally, helping people achieve this success is incredibly satisfying work!

What’s even better is that when we feel content and fulfilled by work, we often find that our minds and energy are free to pursue even more interests either as hobbies, side hustles or purely for pleasure. Doing so can allow us to add a bit of lagniappe to our personal mission.

At first blush, a T-shirt line might sound like a pretty straightforward pursuit. But with Quite The Tees, my mother/artist/cofounder and I infuse a little humor, sass and smarts, while celebrating empowerment, education and the environment. Let me explain.

First, each tee features a specially chosen word or phrase intended to prompt curiosity and discourse, and each is accompanied by a compelling, short, short story that tells the tale of a woman who embodies the word on the tee.

For example, one of our words is “bibliophile,” with its accompanying story:

So Many Shelves To Fill …

No one recalled when, but it began the first time a librarian discovered a $20 bill in a copy of An Honest Thief. Sporadically, many more $20 bills would appear on the bookshelves. As time went on it was noticed that various books were missing; a lot of them.

Across town an elegant woman is putting the finishing touch on her table for a dinner party — fine china, ivory damask linens, silver gleaming in the candlelight. She surveyed the lovely room, taking particular pleasure in the hundreds of books on floor to ceiling shelves surrounding her.

bibliophile … one who collects or loves books

Next, we didn’t want our words to grace just any old boxy, stiff tee. We looked long and hard to find T-shirts that felt soft and cool, had a flattering shape and collar, and were good for the environment. Ours are made from an all-natural blend of 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton.

Bamboo is one of those amazing kind of plants because it produces a 100% biodegradable fiber and it’s one of the fastest growing plants on earth. It also can be grown without pesticides and harvested sustainably. Bamboo requires less energy and water to grow; it absorbs moisture; provides added protection against the sun’s harmful UV rays; and it contains a naturally occurring anti-bacterial agent.

Bamboo also feels incredible on the skin. It’s an especially soft and breathable fabric — cool in hot weather and a great insulating layer in the cold — so it works year-round. What’s not to like about that? The cherry on the cake is that the shirts are Made in the USA, which holds several earthy benefits, too.

The fine art of conversation is languishing as all too often we reduce it to 140 characters or we flagrantly choose the company of our smart phones over the person right before us. This T-shirt line is designed for discerning women who appreciate colloquy. We feature little known or underused words in English and other languages because we’re one world, and sometimes things are best said in French. Or Portuguese. Or Swahili.

Wear a shirt that says “limerent,” and people will talk! You’ll look smart, you’ll inspire curiosity, and perhaps some actual communication and connection will spark.

A portion of profits from the sales of our Tees will go toward supporting the missions of organizations that benefit three of our favorite Es: empowerment, education and the environment. If you are part of such a group and would like to explore a partnership, we’d love to connect with you.

Quite The Tees is a fun and meaningful pursuit that allows me — when I’m not coaching, teaching, advocating or writing — to indulge in a little creativity; share my fondness of fashion, comfort, communication and language; and support some causes I care about deeply.